S03.E01: The Return: Parts 1 and 2

[Lisin]

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My log has a message for you.

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The stars turn and a time presents itself.

[Guest]

I know this was meant to be an 18-hour movie divided up in parts so I'm reserving final judgment until the very end so I can wrap my head around the whole thing.

As for these two episodes: this was Inland Empire Goes to Twin Peaks and Meets Eraserhead with Special Guest Star "Box from Mulholland Drive." 

Good lord. That was heavy-handed.

I just, I don't know. I don't know what to think. My one main takeaway how laughable Evil Dale Cooper's sloppy, over application of bronzer and that crazy pseudo-Elvis wig both were. 

[CynicalGirl]

Yeah, I'm still all like "holy shit. I don't know if I can do this again."

[Peanut6711]

I know exactly what to think--it sucked! If that was the best Lynch could do after 25 years, it's time for him to retire. The original cast only had cameos, most of the show wasn't even set in Twin Peaks, and I'm not even going there with that ridiculous tree replacing the m*****.  #epicfail 

[ShadowHunter]

Dale has been stuck in the Lodge for 25 years now. That does suck.

It was great to see he and Laura have a scene together.

Seeing the Woods also brought back memories.

I do think Evil Dale/Bob looked silly but to see he has been in control all this time. Sad.

Nice to see The Palmer House. That was a nice TV but what was playing is not my thing.

Laura is dead but also alive?

It was nice seeing some off the old characters again. I was always meh on James but a minute was okay.

Shelly has a daughter and was giving eyes to Balthazar Getty.

I knew Sex would bring the evil.

I was bored at seeing Matthew Lillard and his part of the story but we have so much more to go so I can deal.

Dear Shelly.."James was always cool!" Girl NO.

Edited May 22, 2017 by ShadowHunter

[Guest]

15 minutes ago, ShadowHunter said:

Dear Shelly.."James was always cool!" Girl NO.

Right? James was annoying and lame.

Also, I did laugh out loud at his stupid, oversized leather coat. 

I know I'm eventually going to dig this show/movie -- I think I just need to get over that it's not entirely set in Twin Peaks I guess. There was something about the quaintness of the original I always found endearing -- and this seems so theatrical and heavy-handed (right now) in comparison. 

And I really hope they don't relegate Laura and Leland to the Black Lodge. I hope they get out, too.

[Starchild]

But they were killed in the real world, whereas Coop and Gerard were not.

By the way, was Evil Dale talking to Phillip Jeffries? Did I hear that right?

[yourdreamer]

So the plot was super slowwwwww and I didn't like all the different city settings. It didn't feel right to me. The pilot wasn't fast but it had a coherent plot. This one feels so crazy already. I know I will like it in the end, I just hope it goes back to Twin Peaks, the town. I kept hoping Cooper would come out of the water hole with Hawk there. 

[WaltersHair]

I'm out. Lasted an hour. Had tried to re-watch the series itself and all the reasons I hated it the first time came screaming back. Power to those who love this kind of thing.

[Cigale]

I did like the different city settings.  Evil is everywhere!

And on a shallow note, the only one of the original cast who hasn't lost an ounce of his good looks is Michael Horse (Hawk).  

[Happy Harpy]

I liked the scenes that actually happened in Twin Peaks. That's about all the positive I can find. I mean, I was happy to see James of all people. The over the top acting worked in the quirky little city, like a larger-than-life soap opera setting. Elsewhere, it was so woeful that I couldn't even watch.

And it's too bad it wasn't on network TV. Yes, I said it. The original was terrifying because it was subtle. I don't mind explicit gore or sex (hello, GoT fan here) but those scenes were just huh?  and not engaging at all for me.

I felt that there was a lot of Lynch, yet very little of Frost. Lynch is a genius but I rarely even liked anything else he did because to enjoy a story, I happen to need a story. I'm basic like that. Frost seemed to canalize Lynch's creativity and the show was the best when there was a balance. I found no trace of it here.

I'm going to take this as a long pre-credit scene and wait for a couple more episodes to see if the show actually deserves to be called "Twin Peaks" and a continuation of the soap noir I used to love, now that Mr.Lynch had his little artsy fun.

[Pete Martell]

38 minutes ago, Happy Harpy said:

And it's too bad it wasn't on network TV. Yes, I said it. The original was terrifying because it was subtle. I don't mind explicit gore or sex (hello, GoT fan here) but those scenes were just huh?  and not engaging at all for me.

The network TV that aired the original Twin Peaks is long gone. I know there are a few recent shows that people loved, like American Crime, but for the most part these days it's about as subtle as Carrot Top.

I think the most terrifying parts of the original were very in-your-face (Maddie's hallucinations of Bob and her being murdered by Bob), but I think the Lynch who did those is also long gone. He is, I guess, much more esoteric and alienating.

I think the new show is probably, for better or worse, mostly a new product with the name and a few old faces attached. 

Edited May 22, 2017 by Pete Martell

[QuantumMechanic]

Strikes me as more of a sequel to the series finale and FWW than to the series as a whole.

While I'd prefer the latter I can live with the former.   And I'd be lying if I said the hairs on the back of my neck weren't standing up almost constantly.  As Frog and Toad said, "They were scared.  The teacups shook in their hands.  They were having the shivers.  It was a good, warm feeling."

[Primetimer]

After two weeks of think pieces, Twin Peaks is back and turns out it doesn't actually care what you think.

View the full article

[David T. Cole]

(Part 2 drops tomorrow)

[lanter]

During the first, or maybe it was second, night of my eighth grade field trip to Washington DC I wanted to see the premiere of a new show called Twin Peaks. Fortunately, my roommates were also interested so that night we gathered around the motel room's small TV and watched.  What I saw that night forever changed the way I looked at TV shows (no hyperbole). From buying the soundtrack on cassette to getting Laura Palmer's Diary at B. Dalton's, I was obsessed with the series like none before. My love of mysterious/offbeat genre shows that followed (e.g. The X-Files, Lost, Orphan Black, Mr. Robot, etc..) can be traced to that April night in 1990. When I first heard David Lynch was bringing this back I was both excited and wary. I knew it could never recreate that feeling I had watching the original, but I also knew it wouldn't likely tarnish the memory. Now, after watching the first two episodes I can safety say I have no damn idea what is going on. Which just means that Twin Peaks is back, baby!!!

[ichbin]

29 minutes ago, lanter said:

Now, after watching the first two episodes I can safety say I have no damn idea what is going on. Which just means that Twin Peaks is back, baby!!!

Yup.  Another weird journey with no real destination...and probably, just like the first time, I'll be there for every episode.   

[LoveLeigh]

I never watched the original series and want to know if viewing that original series is necessary to understand the plot of these first two episodes. 

[ichbin]

5 minutes ago, DakotaLavender said:

I never watched the original series and want to know if viewing that original series is necessary to understand the plot of these first two episodes. 

I'm guessing that it would serve as an enhancement rather than a neccessity.

[Ms Lark]

I waited 25 years for this and I am underwhelmed. It's very Lynch without the original Frost/broadcast restraints. Can't say I enjoyed much of it other than catching up with the old characters. Not keen on Bob-flavored Coop, but I don't think we're supposed to be. I didn't care for FWWM, so had a feeling it would be a closer to that, Mullholland Drive (hated it), and Blue Velvet (loved it) than Original Recipe TP. Big sigh, but I'll be watching. FYI: Eps 3&4 are up on On Demand -- at least on Comcast. I'm off to sample...

Edited May 22, 2017 by Ms Lark

[Guest]

3 hours ago, David T. Cole said:

(Part 2 drops tomorrow)

It's On Demand now. (I watched it last night after the first two parts.)

[jenrising]

I went in with no expectation of what it would be and I have to say I loved the first two hours. I actually really like that the geographical scope is larger than the original series because I think I would've been a bit disappointed with just "here's what's going on in the town now." After all these years I feel like this bigger story is earned. 

Basically, I'm in for wherever this crazy ride is going to take me.

[Pete Martell]

2 hours ago, DakotaLavender said:

I never watched the original series and want to know if viewing that original series is necessary to understand the plot of these first two episodes. 

I'd say the pilot, the episode where the killer is revealed, the season 2 finale, and the movie are important to watch if you feel you need to see any of the past, if you don't have time to watch the rest. I should warn that the movie is extremely dark. I think it's a brilliant film, but it's not an easy watch.

[clack]

I found the 1st half hour or so stilted, slow, off-putting and tedious. ( Lynch at his best draws you in immediately).

But then the thing emerged from the glass box, we got a more-or-less coherent story with a mystery hook in the South Dakota section, and the Black Lodge-set bits got really freaky -- and I was in.

[jsbt]

Fucking loved it.

[jamblastx]

Meanwhile.....before watching the new series, I did rewatch the orignal's series finale and while I still contend it is the best series finale ever even though it ended on multiple cliffhangers, it is more than a little dated. Yet the Laura Palmer doppleganger screams in the Black Lodge still give me the creeps and it is still just so friggin' cool seeing the "I'll see you in 25 years' and they actually did it.

OK....wow, I'm still not sure what I watched with the new series. Twin Peaks meets Mulholland Drive....It certainly was not the original series but maybe that's a good thing. Back in 91-92 I thought that ABC really gave Lynch/Frost a surprisingly amount of free reign but not compared to what the new series does. While 'weird' is fine, I think they need to dial it back down a notch to 'quirky' for a little bit. That said, I was more than a little transfixed with what happens in the NY room scene.

This may not be 'traditional' Twin Peaks but I'm glad it exists and so far, I'm hooked

[JustCrazy]

I don't think I've anticipated anything as much as this series.  I was a die hard Knotts Landing fan and missed the original run.  How clueless was I?  Got hooked when my then boyfriend, now husband turned me on to it.  Heck, that's probably why I married him ? I baked a cherry pie and locked myself in the tv room so I wouldn't be disturbed.   WTF?  It was very Mullhuland Drive, which isn't my favorite film.  I hated the pilot of West World, then was glad I hung in there; hoping this turns out to be the same.  So Dale's been sitting in the same chair, in the same suit for 25 years...bummer.  I'm thinking th Blck Lodge is a really stinky place.  And seeing Gracie naked was too jarring.  How dare she grow up and do the dirty.  Fran is gonna be pissed.

[LucyHoneychrrch]

I went into the new season determined to take it as it came, without expecting too much. A lot of exposition is necessary to bring the audience up to speed after this long, so I wasn't bothered by obvious storytelling (Lucy: "Cooper went missing before Wally was born").

A lot of the new stuff was very old-school Twin Peaks. The episode ending at the Roadhouse was a nice, "welcome-home" touch. And man, James Marshall seems to have aged exceedingly well.

Oddly, the only storyline that didn't captivate involved all the Darknet Cooper shenanigans, save for his interaction with Phyllis, the wife of the hapless Bill-the-murderer. The rest of it seemed sort of obligatory; we have to see DarkNet Cooper being all dark and Bob-like in order to understand the nature of the beast, as it were. And ewwww at the "you're nice and wet" hotel scene. Hork.

Highlights for me: The South Dakota murder, which looks fascinating and contained all the subtle humor I love from this series ("The Morgans are coming for dinner!"); Catherine Coulson as Margaret, which actually made me gasp and tear up, because I had been under the impression that she'd passed away before filming began; Deputy Hawk and the familiarity of the police department; the stunning Grace Zabriskie as Sarah Palmer, avidly watching animals tear one another apart, the reflections bouncing from every mirror in the room. Sarah Palmer, surrounded, as ever, by death and destruction.

Total fail for me: The arm. COME ON.

[TattleTeeny]

10 hours ago, Peanut6711 said:

I know exactly what to think--it sucked! If that was the best Lynch could do after 25 years, it's time for him to retire. The original cast only had cameos, most of the show wasn't even set in Twin Peaks, and I'm not even going there with that ridiculous tree replacing the m*****.  #epicfail 

Do we know that the originals are relegated only to cameos henceforth? I mean, OK, it didn't make me feel like the first episode did way back when, but it just started; everything can't happen in the first two episodes.

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I felt that there was a lot of Lynch, yet very little of Frost. Lynch is a genius but I rarely even liked anything else he did because to enjoy a story, I happen to need a story. I'm basic like that. Frost seemed to canalize Lynch's creativity and the show was the best when there was a balance. I found no trace of it here.

I'm with you here. Despite my love for Twin Peaks, I never cared for DL's movies regardless of what all my grunge-era art-school friends said, haha!

Edited May 22, 2017 by TattleTeeny

[paigow]

What is the Las Vegas angle? The mysterious boss is a Black Lodge member but not Bob? What is DoppleCooper doing? Trying to frame George? But George is at the jail with an alibi?

[LAFR]

Excellent podcast. Thank you for doing one.

[LucyHoneychrrch]

What is the Las Vegas angle? The mysterious boss is a Black Lodge member but not Bob? What is DoppleCooper doing? Trying to frame George? But George is at the jail with an alibi?

My take on Vegas is that the casino boss was paying Ray and Darya to take out Cooper, at someone else's behest.

George is going to get set up for Phyllis's murder, because Phyllis told him to come to her place after he meets with Bill.

[paigow]

That was not $500k passed to Riley from The Mentalist at the casino, so connecting it to DoppleCooper is a longshot...

However, George does not have GSR.... 

[dosodog]

I've made it as far as Evil Cooper massaging the guys face.

It has plenty of original recipe weirdness, WTF did I just see and holy crap could I be any more tense watching this.  However it is lacking in its original charmingness, humor and sweet quirkiness. 

I am ever hopeful that will change.

Of course Jerry is a marijuana grower.  What else would he be in a state where pot is legal.

I knew something horrible was going  to land up in that glassbox.  Yet not as terrifying as Bob in any scene Bob was ever in. Shrugs shoulders, Bob is the stuff nightmares are scared of.

100% concur the new arm is a complete fail.

Hawk is still very easy on the eyes.

[uoflfan]

I don't have Showtime so I'll have to watch online via Showtime on Demand but I cannot wait. I also had a mad crush on Bobby Briggs.

[dosodog]

I'm watching through Hulu.... 

Which means I can go back and try to understand the WTF moments.  :()

[CynicalGirl]

But...but...it's one big WTF moment!

[clack]

Overall -- I loved it. But on to some quibbles:

The tree/arm did not work. Maybe it would have been a cool image if we got only a glimpse of it, but as it is it went on way too long.

The pointless cameos. Only "Deputy Chief" Hawk seemed connected to an actual plot.

And was it necessary to set the murder mystery plot in South Dakota? Why not in Twin Peaks?

[RedMal]

I've only seen the original series as a kid in the 90's, so I can't say if this is anything like it, but I really liked these first four episodes. I have no clue what's going on, but it kept me interested.

Did anyone notice how much MacLachlan looked like Sigourney Weaver while wearing that wig? Just me?

[dosodog]

27 minutes ago, clack said:

Overall -- I loved it. But on to some quibbles:

The tree/arm did not work. Maybe it would have been a cool image if we got only a glimpse of it, but as it is it went on way too long.

The pointless cameos. Only "Deputy Chief" Hawk seemed connected to an actual plot.

And was it necessary to set the murder mystery plot in South Dakota? Why not in Twin Peaks?

Because in original recipe TP, Bob was killing people everywhere and not just in TP.  Theresa Banks was killed before Laura Palmer in Oregon.

The FBI had several open murders from different states.

Bob is everywhere!

[iMonrey]

I eagerly awaited this but was sorely disappointed. The first season of Twin Peaks was so damn popular but there's a reason it got cancelled after the second season - it just got too weird and hard to follow, and this relaunch is doubling down on that. There's no way on earth anyone who didn't follow Season 2 and Fire Walk With Me could ever grasp this thing let alone follow it. I don't know why Lynch and Frost couldn't craft something more akin to the lovable quirkiness of Season 1. This was just so damn weird and bizarre. It's been 25 years since I saw the original, I remember how much I loved the first season and how much I hated the second season. This is too much like the second season, only worse.

[Starchild]

3 hours ago, LAFR said:

Excellent podcast. Thank you for doing one.

How long is it? It seems we won't be getting written recaps, and personally I'm a little disappointed by that. I can read through a recap in 5 minutes. I don't really have time for podcasts.

[LAFR]

  3 hours ago, LAFR said:

Excellent podcast. Thank you for doing one.

How long is it? It seems we won't be getting written recaps, and personally I'm a little disappointed by that. I can read through a recap in 5 minutes. I don't really have time for podcasts.

It's 15 minutes and Dan is hilarious (IMHO.)

[Affogato]

2 hours ago, clack said:

And was it necessary to set the murder mystery plot in South Dakota? Why not in Twin Peaks?

South Dakota, also kind of creepy?  I think the first shows were to tell us that the evil has spread, the black lodge (etc) is not just a weird wood and an oddness in Washington, but it is evil that can get everywhere.

[Affogato]

I loved the music, the interesting songs and the interesting bands and the noise in the black lodge, New York, the glass box, the static that indicated the spreading presence of evil. (and while they approached the glass box in New York I almost turned off the sound because it was so grating, but I didn't because I knew there had to be a reason). I like that the speakers spread evil, like propaganda and bad political agendas, and that they are, of course, things that are everywhere.  I liked that we got the pretty coherent and engaging murder mystery, similar to the first Laura Palmer mystery, to tell something like the history without exposition. I liked that Dark Cooper and Light Cooper, looked like sufficiently different people, like the picture of Dorian Gray, Dark Cooper seems larger in size, as if he has kept growing like a lizard. I liked that the people we met in Twin Peaks haven't changed all that much, I liked that Ben's assistant was a little bit like Audrey in appearance, and that Ben of all people chewed out Jerry for Sexism. I liked that Jerry still focuses on food. The arm/tree was odd, but I suspect that the arm will be a recurring theme. I wonder if the tree will gain ornaments, because how cool a product tie in could that be? I like that there are still places, like the diner, that are still to be explored.

I was happy the log lady managed to do some filming.

[ShadowHunter]

I would have liked to have seen more of Twin Peaks but since we still have 16 more episodes to go I don't want to complain just yet.

I feel like the plot of Shelly and her daughter who may not have the right boyfriend could go somewhere so we may see more of her.

Look forward to finally seeing Bobby.

Hope to see Laura and Leland out of the lodge. Poor Laura screaming again.

Can't wait to hopefully see Dale reclaim his life. Hey this means Audrey is no longer a high school girl. They have been separated for years now they may have a chance.

[LucyHoneychrrch]

  7 hours ago, LAFR said:

Excellent podcast. Thank you for doing one.

How long is it? It seems we won't be getting written recaps, and personally I'm a little disappointed by that. I can read through a recap in 5 minutes. I don't really have time for podcasts.

I too was a little annoyed that there's no written recap.

[Peanut6711]

16 hours ago, Happy Harpy said:

I felt that there was a lot of Lynch, yet very little of Frost. Lynch is a genius but I rarely even liked anything else he did because to enjoy a story, I happen to need a story. I'm basic like that. Frost seemed to canalize Lynch's creativity and the show was the best when there was a balance. I found no trace of it here.

I do too. Story is a huge part of what was missing in these opening episodes and a big contrast from the original pilot. The whole reason people got pulled into TP in the first place was the storytelling of Laura's murder/body being found, the town's reaction, and the arrival of this quirky detective. It was the whole basis of the shown and it was severely missing in the redo premier. I'm still scratching my heading, wondering who gave the greenlight for this script and how far up Lynch's ass they were when they did.

7 hours ago, dosodog said:

However it is lacking in its original charmingness, humor and sweet quirkiness. 

100% concur the new arm is a complete fail.

Hawk is still very easy on the eyes.

Couldn't agree with you more on the first two item.  I think they should have made Hawk the current sheriff. Why bother w/a Sheriff Truman redo and adding another new cast member (to which there's already too many) when Hawk could have been promoted to the job upon Harry's retirement. 

6 hours ago, uoflfan said:

I don't have Showtime so I'll have to watch online via Showtime on Demand but I cannot wait. I also had a mad crush on Bobby Briggs.

I always liked Bobby back in the day too.  Curious to see what they are going to do with him, if anything useful. 

6 hours ago, clack said:

The tree/arm did not work. Maybe it would have been a cool image if we got only a glimpse of it, but as it is it went on way too long.

The pointless cameos. Only "Deputy Chief" Hawk seemed connected to an actual plot.

And was it necessary to set the murder mystery plot in South Dakota? Why not in Twin Peaks?

The tree/arm was just gawd awful. I can't believe they'd let such cheesy special effects be used in this day and age. The original did a better job with sending Josie into the drawer knob and that was over 25 years ago with a much smaller budget I'm sure. 

Agree, Hawk and the Log Lady and Lucy's "it's the blinking button" were the only semblance of the classic this is based on. (And that says a lot because I was never found of Lucy and Andy's subplots).

I think I could get a lot more invested in the SD murder mystery if it was happening in Twin Peaks with the original cast surrounding it. Instead I felt like I was watching Law & Order meets the X-files. 

[Canada]

What in the fresh hell was that??

You know it's not good when Ruth Davenport's kooky neighbour is the best thing about the episode.

Also, I felt so old when I saw Matthew Lillard.  I'm sure it was only last week that I was a youngster watching a very young-looking Lillard in Scream.  It wasn't that long ago, was it?!

[Peanut6711]

19 minutes ago, Canada said:

Also, I felt so old when I saw Matthew Lillard.  I'm sure it was only last week that I was a youngster watching a very young-looking Lillard in Scream.  It wasn't that long ago, was it?!

I know how you feel. As if it wasn't bad enough we've actually been waiting over 25 years for this to return but then the teenage Scream killer stars and he's a middle aged principal!